Thousands of Buddhists gathered in central Seoul Friday night to protest the resumption of U.S. beef imports. They dispersed peacefully around 11 p.m. without clashes with police.

The Buddhists were the third religious group to pray in the plaza in front of City Hall this week, following Catholics and Protestants.

"The one million candles firmly showed that the owner of this nation is the people," monk Sugyeong was quoted as saying at the opening of the Buddhist service, referring to the largest street rally in 20 years held on June 10.

Police said about 6,000 people participated in the Buddhist service, while organizers claimed the number of participants was much higher.

The South Korean government called on citizens to return to their normal life after its new beef import agreement with Washington took effect last week. To ease public concerns over mad cow disease, Seoul limited the imports to beef from cattle of 30 months of age and younger.